QUISIERON ENTERRARNOS...NO SABÍAN QUE ÉRAMOS SEMILLA

DANIEL BRITTANY CHÁVEZ

“Quisieron Enterrarnos…No Sabían Que Éramos Semilla” is a political performance art body piece that addresses the state violence of Ayotzinapa and the 43 disappeared students and puts it in conversation with widespread violence in the Americas in the year 2014, such as femicide and other state disappearances that have received less mainstream attention. Using an inverted map of the Americas (from Canada to Chile) that is tattooed on my back, I had 27 needles inserted into the skin on my back in the geographical areas most affected by these various violences in the year 2014. The first insertions happened in Guerrero, Mexico, with five needles. The rest of needles were inserted one at a time with a couple locations carrying two needles. After insertion, scarification cuts were made alongside each needle. Then, the needles were removed one at a time while the blood ran over the map. The performance intends to present the body as a living archive for historical memories of violence across many bodies.